The Sims 4 won’t update: Here are 6 potential fixes

Madalina Dinita
by Madalina Dinita
Former Managing Editor
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The Sims 4 is one of the most popular games in the world, with millions of active players. The title was launched in 2014, but it’s still affected by various issues even after all this time.

Sometimes, The Sim 4 won’t update. There can be multiple manifestations of this issue: nothing happens when players hit the update button, the update process fails with an error, and more. Here’s how one player describes this issue:

So my Sims 4 is completely greyed out, says it needs an update. So I hover over it, and see a button that says “Update Now” so I click it and nothing happens. I’m pretty peeved I can’t play my game.

If you’ve encountered these issues, follow the troubleshooting steps listed below.

How can I fix Sims 4 update issues on PC?

1. Restart your computer and restart Origin with Administrator rights

2. Repair the game. Go to My Games > right-click the game tile > select Repair Game

3. Clear your Origin Cache:

  1. Hit the Start button > go to Control Panel > Appearance and Personalization > Folder Options
  2. Click the View tab > go to Advanced settings > click Show hidden files and folders > click OK to save the changes
  3. If Origin is running, click  Origin in the menu bar > select Exit
  4. Click Start > Computer > open the C: drive > Open the ProgramData folder > select the Origin folder > delete all the files and folders inside it except for LocalContent
  5. Go to C:: > open the Users folder > open the folder with your computer’s username
  6. Go to AppData > Roaming > Origin > delete all the files and folders inside
  7. Go back to the AppData folder > open the Local folder > Origin > delete all the files and folders inside
  8. Log in to the Origin client and see if the latest The Sim 4 updates install now.

4. Reset the game to factory settings without reinstalling it

  1. Create a backup of the Sims 4 folder in DocumentsElectronic Arts to a flash drive
  2. Rename The Sims 4 folder in DocumentsElectronic Arts to The Sims 4_Backup
  3. Start the game. Keep in mind that there will be no save games, and your options will be reset to factory settings
  4. A new The Sims 4 folder will be available in the EA folder. Copy back all the Sims 4 user files
  5. Start a new game. Install the latest game updates available.

5. Enable Safe Mode transfer

Launch Origin > go to App settings > Advanced >check the Safe Mode transfer box in the Origin tab.

5. Uninstall Origin

  1. Manually uninstall Origin
  2. Run CCleaner or any registry cleaner of your choice
  3. Restart your modem > perform a Clean Boot
  4. Make sure that your UAC is enabled and set to notify.
  5. Download the latest version of Origin and install the client > run it with Admin rights
  6. Add firewall/antivirus exceptions for Origin > add the needed ports
  7. Launch the game again and install the updates.

6. Temporarily disable your antivirus, firewall and VPN

If you still can’t install the latest updates for the game, try turning off your antivirus software, firewall as well as VPN tool (if you’re using one). Sometimes, these software solutions may block game updates. For example, your antivirus may wrongly flag game updates as malware and block the download process.

Once you’ve downloaded the latest game version, don’t forget to enable your antivirus and firewall protection.

If you’ve come across other workarounds to fix The Sims 4‘s update issues, list the troubleshooting steps in the comment section below.

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Editor’s Note: This post was originally published in May 2017 and has been since updated for freshness, and accuracy.

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Editor's Note: This article was originally published in May 2017 and was revamped and updated in February 2019 for freshness, accuracy, and comprehensiveness.
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